James Saft

James Saft is a Reuters columnist. The opinions expressed are his own.

HUNTSVILLE, Ala., Aug 30 – In an unintended irony for a continent with a great public transport infrastructure Europe’s debt rescue plans are turning into a train wreck. Consider that as Greek two-year interest rates stood at 45 percent on Monday, officials and interests in the euro zone descended into an unseemly mix of squabbling over assets, denying the undeniable and disagreeing about first principles. Even as weak as recent U.S. economic data has been, these fractures, which imply heightened risk of a bank-centered market crisis, are surely the main source of the recent extreme financial volatility.

James Saft is a Reuters columnist. The opinions expressed are his own.

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — With a U.S. debt deal hopefully past, we can look forward to the ritual trotting out of explanations for why investors should be bullish despite a broken political system and a AAA rating on the edge.